Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Shares Gap Down to $113.43

Southern Copper Co. (NYSE:SCCO) shares gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $113.43, but opened at $109.10. Southern Copper shares last traded at $110.79, with a volume of 569,069 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. HSBC cut Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $80.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $63.50 to $61.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $91.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Southern Copper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “sector underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern Copper has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $76.00.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $84.78 billion, a PE ratio of 34.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.46, a current ratio of 3.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The business’s fifty day moving average is $97.98 and its 200-day moving average is $84.90.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The basic materials company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.15). Southern Copper had a net margin of 24.51% and a return on equity of 30.85%. The business had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.37 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Southern Copper Co. will post 3.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 13th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 12th. Southern Copper’s payout ratio is 101.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern Copper

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Southern Copper in the fourth quarter worth $71,802,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 677.0% during the 3rd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 310,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,378,000 after purchasing an additional 270,540 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Southern Copper by 8,523.8% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 172,907 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,882,000 after purchasing an additional 170,902 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in Southern Copper by 378.9% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 166,398 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,322,000 after purchasing an additional 131,651 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Southern Copper by 17.5% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 687,501 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $51,854,000 after purchasing an additional 102,286 shares during the last quarter. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Southern Copper

Southern Copper Corporation engages in mining, exploring, smelting, and refining copper and other minerals in Peru, Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador, and Chile. The company is involved in the mining, milling, and flotation of copper ore to produce copper and molybdenum concentrates; smelting of copper concentrates to produce blister and anode copper; refining of anode copper to produce copper cathodes; production of molybdenum concentrate and sulfuric acid; production of refined silver, gold, and other materials; and mining and processing of zinc, copper, molybdenum, silver, gold, and lead.